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Joseph Stebbins (1749-1816) of Deerfield, Massachusetts, was quite active in the American Revolution. He was at the Battle of Bunker Hill in 1775 and participated in the defeat of General Burgoyne's army at Saratoga in 1777. Stebbins had already been promoted to the rank of Captain when Governor John Hancock appointed him in 1781 to be a Lieutenant Colonel in the 5th Regiment of Massachusetts militia. Military titles were an important measure of position and good breeding in American society. Joseph Stebbins kept the title "Colonel Stebbins" until his death in 1816.